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The Olympic Peninsula

4 07 2026

It’s about 40 miles “as the crow files” from Angel of the Winds to John Wayne Marina in Sequim, WA. However the driving distance is nearly 180 miles and over 3 hours including a transit of Seattle, Tacoma and across the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. After the narrows, it’s a beautiful drive past Gig Harbor, the massive naval base at Bremerton, over the Hood Canal floating bridge and along Discovery Bay to the picturesque marina on Sequim Bay. We last visited John Wayne Marina RV in 2024, and have returned for another fun filled July 4^th weekend. We’re in site #42, which is a full hookup, 50A back-in site in the top row. In addition to Independence Days celebrations, Dungeness Crab season opened on July 2^nd, and nearly every site has steamer pots set-up anticipating the daily catch.

John Wayne Marina, Sequim, WA

Most of the time in Sequim is about relaxing after the busy rally schedule last week. However, we did manage an afternoon trip to Port Townsend and nice dinner at Siren’s Pub. The weather wasn’t optimal for outdoor dining, but we enjoyed selections from their bar menu that included handmade burgers, wild salmon, fish and chips and a few local brews and excellent cocktails.

Port Townsend, WA

From Sequim, we’re off to Salt Creek Recreation Area. This sprawling county park provides about 90 camp sites. 40 of these provide power and electric, and only half of those reservable. Sites 35-38 are nice pull-through sites, 26-32 offer the best “out the back window view” and 16-24 are the closest to the water. Which, in this case is a tall cliff overlooking the Strait of Juan de Fuca with Victoria, Canada in the distance. The water is accessible from a few paths, but there’s not much in the way of beach. For a better beach experience, Crescent Beach & RV Park is optimal with back-in sites directly across from a large sandy beach.

Salt Creek Recreation Area, Sites 35-39, Port Angeles, WA

Salt Creek Recreation Area, Sites 21-24, Port Angeles, WA

Salt Creek Recreation Area campground map

Salt Creek Recreation Area tide pools

Marymere Falls, Olympic National Park, Port Angeles, WA

While at Salt Creek we drove around Lake Crescent and took a short hike to see the beautiful Marymere Falls. After 4 nights of wonderful coastal views, dark, quiet nights and a few wildlife visits, we’re headed east. And, instead of going around the long way again, we’ve opted to travel aboard the Washington State Ferry from Kingston to Edmonds – a first for us! More about the ferry ride when we get to Leavenworth, WA, our next stop.

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Tags: ferry, john wayne marina, Port Angeles, port townsend, sequim
Categories : Summer Camping 2026

Welcome to Sunny Sequim!

30 08 2016

Welcome to Sunny Sequim, in the “blue-hole” of the Olympic Peninsula. Positioned in the rain shadow of the Olympic Mountains, most Pacific rain falls on the windward side as storms drop their moisture due to the elevation increase. Left dry, the storms over Sequim produce only about 16 inches of rain per year, as compared to the Hoh Rain Forest only 40 miles to the southwest and drenched with over 12 FEET of rain annually. Mispronouncing Sequim is common, most often “see’quim” – but the correct way is “skwim”.

We’re parked at John Wayne’s Waterfront Resort, just a few miles east of downtown Sequim. The real John Wayne, the Duke, spent many summers navigating the waters around Sequim, the San Juan Islands and Puget Sound. The RV resort is still owned by John Wayne Enterprises, headed by Wayne’s youngest son Ethan. And, the land for the John Wayne Marina across the street was originally donated by the family. We’re in site #42, the second to the last site in the far back row. With 4 rows of RV’s, the back row probably has the narrowest view of the marina and Sequim Bay, but provides nice tall trees and is fairly private and quiet. The front row undoubtedly has the best views, but also suffers from some traffic noise along Sequim Bay Road.

With a full weekend and a Monday afternoon in Sequim, we explored as much as possible – Dungeness Spit and Campground, Port Angeles and into Olympic National Park along Hurricane Ridge, shopping for delicious Pacific Northwest seafood, produce and beautiful Sequim lavender products plus a relaxing afternoon along the waterfront in Port Townsend. In Dungeness Recreation Area Campground, site #8 is probably the optimal non-reservation site and #49, #51 & #53 are best reservation sites. All of these sites back to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and offer some degree of viewing across the water. All sites are dry, with water and a dump station within the campground.

Sequim and the northern Olympic Peninsula is a “must return soon” destination – there’s so much more to do! Thanks to our awesome tour guides, G & D – we’d never have managed to see as much without you guys!